Clean-out means for burner connections



Oct. 2, 1934. L.. s. cHADwlcK ET Al. 1,975,192

CLEAN-OUT MEANS FOR BURNER CONNECTIONS Filed OOC. 8, 1931 4 Sheets-Sheet l- /4 grr/vento@ S y @c 2, i934. 5, CHADWlCK 1 AL 1,975,l2

CLEAN-OUT MEANS FORv BURNER CONNECTIONS Filed Oct. 8, 1931 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 L. s. cHADwlcK Er All.

CLEAN-OUT MEANS FOR BURNER CONNECTIONS 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 Filed Oct. 8, v3.931

f/ l] l gwwmtos f' 'in XQDWM@ Dcr. 2, 1934.

L. S. CHADWICK ET AL. CLEAN-OUT; MEANS FOR BURNER CONNECTIONS 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 Filed oct. 8. 1931 Patented Geez, 1934 CLEAN-oor MEANS Foa BURNER CONNECTIONS Lee S. Chadwick, Shaker Heights, `and Charles J. Kessler, Cleveland Heights, Ohio, assgnors to Perfection Stove Company, Cleveland, Ohio, a corporation `of Ohio ApplicationOctober 8,1931, Serial No. 567,684 v 13 Claims. (ol. 15a- 120)-v This invention relates to improvements in heating apparatus of the class disclosed in a copending application led jointly by ourselves and Marc Resek on October 13, 1930, Serial No.'488,210,

which has resulted in Patent No. 1,944,593, issued January 23, 1934. v

'I'he present invention has to do particularly with means for clearing the liquid fuel supply connection of the iirepot or burner, and the adjacent portion of the feed line, of incrustations or deposits of carbon, ash, or other foreign matter, the main object being to provide a comparatively simple and inexpensive means of this character that is eiiicient, durable, immune from disorder,

especially convenient of operation, is so constructed as to obviate the need of a packing gland where the cleaning means enters the fuel line, and that includes actuating mechanism which, by reason of its nature, practically insures the retraction of the cleaning element from the repot or burner, or from the zone of intense heat, before the apparatus can be placed in normal condition.

Another object is to provide a construction that readily adapts itself to installation in heaters already built in accordance with the disclosure of the above mentioned application.

The foregoing and other more specific objects are attained in the embodiment of the invention illustrated in the accompanying drawings wherein Fig. 1 is a sectional side elevation of a heater incorporating the invention; Fig. 2 is a vertical transverse section through the heater substantially on the line 2-2 of Fig. 1 and looking forwardly as indicated by the arrows associated `with said line, the operating parts being in normal position; Fig. 3 is a view similar to Fig. 2 but embraces only the upper portion of the heater and shows the grid removed fromthe top of the heater and the operating parts in operative position; Fig. 4 is a vertical section through the front portion of the heater, the view being from the si e opposite that from which Fig. l is taken; Fig. 5 is a plan View of the'operating handle andv guide of the cleaning means and embraces adjacent parts of the heater; Fig. 6 is a perspective view of the operating handle, guide, and upper end of the cleaner actuating rod, in separated condition; and Fig. '7 is a detail of the connection between the exible cleaning element and the rod through which it is actuated.

The heater, generally, 4is the same as that shown in the previously mentioned application. and it comprises a casing l, supported a suitable distance above the floor by legs 2, and enclosing a drum 3 within the lower portion of which is supported a repot or burner 4. This flrepot or burner includes an upwardly converging annular top wall 5 that is supported from and spaced below a downwardly converging annular baflie 6 by fastening means 7. The baille 6 is, in turnfcon- 60 nected to an annulus 8 that is welded or otherwise secured to and extends inwardly from the wall of the drum 3. The space within the drum`abovesaid annulus constitutes the combustion chamber 10. Said chamber is provided with an `outlet collar 11 that extends through the-rearwall of the casing 1. It may be explained that the drum 3 is provided near its lower end with` outwardly extending 4brackets 13 that bear upon and are connected to angle members 14 of the casing; and 70 that the upper end of the drum is held centrally of the casing by cross braces 15 that are fastened to the top wall of the drum by a bolt 16. A socalled lighting tube 18 is slightly inclined upwardly from the front of vthe firepot or burner Y 4 and the same is adapted to be closed by a member or plug 19 that is held -in place by latch 20.

The front ofthe casing 1 is provided with an opening 22 through which access is had to 80 the lighting tube 18, and a closure 23 is provided for said opening. The casing incorporates a top frame 25 having a. depressed ledge 26 on which grids 27 and 28 are supported. The top frame is secured to the inwardlyyextending edgesof '85 the side panels of the casing by bolts 29.

A liquid fuel reservoir 30 is supported by, and

rearwardly of, the lower portion of the casing and a supply conduit 3l leads therefrom to the inlet of a so-called metering valve 32 that is 90 supported, as by a bracket 33, from an adjacent portion of the casing. Connected to the outlet of said valve is a T 33 from the downwardly directed branch of which leads what is, in effect,

a continuation of thesupply conduit. This section of the conduit, designated 34, is curved rearwardly and upwardly and is vjoined to the lower end of the inlet connection 35 of the repot or burner. When the valve 32 is open, liquid fuel will flow from the reservoir 30 through the sup- 100 ply line 31, the valve 32, the T 33, the conduit section- 34, andthe connection 35,' to the depress'ed central portion of the bottom wall of the repot or burner, 4,.k such portion oonstitut-j ing a shallow basin designated 36., It will be '105 `seen `by reference lto the application hereinbefore mentioned that the liquid fuel reservoir is of a well known type equipped with means for automatically controllingA the delivery of oil in accordance with the demand, the reservoir being 11o i A ing gland orv other leak-proof means is needed between the tube and rod 39.

Connected to the lower end of the rod 39 is a flexible cleaning element 40 which is in the nature of a closely wound spiral spring `or, to make a further comparison, a well known type of flexible shaft. The element passes downwardly through the T 33 and into the supply conduit section 34 and under normal conditions its lower end portion reposes within said section, fully retracted from the supply connection 35 of the firepot or burner. Our present preferred manner of connecting the flexible element 40 to the rod 39 is illustrated in detail in Fig. 7. The end of the rod is formed with a relatively deep recess and the terminal of the element is inserted into the recess and is held therein by brazing material 41 deposited within an aperture in the side of the rod that leads into said recess.

Secured within the front side of the top frame of the heater, as by certain of the previously mentioned bolts 29, are the base flanges 42 of a guide that is designated generally by the reference numeral 43. This guide is preferably constructed of sheet metal, and its central portion is offset upwardly from the plane of its base flanges 42 to provide a top wall 44 and side walls 45 and 46. A slot 47 extends up the side wall 45 from a point substantially flush with the top surface of the adjacent base flange 42 and laterally across the top wall 44. A slot 48 is formed in the side wall 46 and the adjacent base flange 42 and is in the vertical plane of the slot 47. An operating handle or lever 50, which is also preferably constructed of strap metal of sufficiently heavy gauge to insure stiffness, is designed to operate through the slot 47 and, at times, to cooperate with the slot 43. The upper end of the previously mentioned rod 39 is flattened and is pivotally connected at 51 with what may be termed the inner end of the operating handle or lever 50. The opposite end portion of the lever or handle is offset slightly from the plane of its body portion to provide a shoulder 52, and a suitable distance beyond such offset portion the handle or lever is extended laterally to form a grip portion 53.

Before explaining the manner in which our invention is used, the operation of the heater may be briefly described. Assuming that the reservoir 30 is supplied with liquid fuel and-that the valve 32 is o pen and the liquid level stands within the basin 36 of the repot or burner at the elevation indicated by the dotted line a, the fuel may be lighted by removing the closure 23, lifting the latch 20, withdrawing the member or plug 19 and inserting a lighted match or a burning taper or piece of paper or the like through the lighting tube 18, after which the member 19 is replaced and latched and the closure 23 returned to its former position. Primary air is admitted to the flrepot or burner through the perforations 4a in the peripheral wall thereof, and secondary air is drawn in through the space between the annular top wall 5 of the Loraine repot or burner and the baffle 6. The principal part of the process of vcombustion takes place within the combustion chamber l() and the prod-' ucts escape through the outlet collar 1l which is intended, of course, to be'suitably connected to a chimney.

In case carbon or ash becomes incrusted upon or deposited within the supply connection 35 of the firepot or burner to such an extent that it interferes with a proper flow of liquid fuel to the basin 36, the grid 27 may be lifted from the top frame of the heater and the operating handle or lever 50 swung to a vertical position, for which purpose it is grasped by the part designated 53. When disposed in vertical 0r approximately vertical position it, with the rod 39, may be reciprocated to impart a to-and-fro movement to the flexible cleaning element 40, the lower end of said element operating back and forth through the inlet connection 35 of the repot or burner and dislodging and removing any foreign matter that may have accumulated therein.

The ease with which the operating handle or lever 50 may be maintained in a substantially vertical position during its reciprocation is due to the fact that the left hand end of the slot 47 (as the parts are viewed in Fig. 6) is spaced from the inner surface of the wall 45 a distance approximately equal to the width of the handle or lever. On account of this, by exerting a slight pressure on the handle or lever in the direction of said end of the slot during such reciprocation,

the lever will be held against the inner surface of the wall 45 below the opposite or lower end of the slot 47 and thus guided in a vertical course. The shoulder 52, by engagement with the guide, serves as a stop to limit the downward movement of the operating handle or lever and likewise the extent to which the cleaning element may be projected. Furthermore, the grip portion 53 extending above the top of the guide the distance it does when the shoulder 52 engages the guide, eliminates the possibility of returning tthe grid 27 to its normal place in the stove top until the cleaning means is returned to normal condition with the flexible element well retracted within the supply conduit. When the operating handle or lever is swung to the side, as shown in Figs. 1 and 2, the inner end of the same occupies the slot 48; and it may be explained that until the lever is retracted sufficiently to allow its inner end to enter the slot 48, the opposite end 0f the lever will be held at such an elevation that the grid could not be replaced. It is not likely, therefore, that the cleaning means will be left when not in use in any but normal condition with the cleaning element 40 well retracted from the zone of intense heat.

Having thus described our invention, what we claim is:

1. In heating apparatus, in combination with the burner, a constant level liquid fuel supply means, a conduit for conveying fuel from said supply means to the burner, said conduit being entirely below said level thereby to establish a liquid level in the burner corresponding to that in the supply means, a second conduit opening into the first mentioned -conduit and having an open end a material distance above the aforesaid level, a cleaning element reciprocable in the rst mentioned conduit, and actuating means entering the second mentioned conduit and operatively connected to the cleaning element.

2. In heating apparatus, in combination with the burner, a constant level liquid fuel supply Lerares means, a curved conduit for conveying fuel from said supply means to the burner, said conduit being entirely below said level thereby to establish a liquid level in the burner corresponding to that in the supply means, a second conduit opening into the first mentioned conduit and having an'open end a material distance above the aforesaid level, a flexible cleaning element reciprocable in the rst mentioned condult,.and 'actuating means entering the second mentioned conduit and operatively connected to the cleaning element. 3. In heating apparatus, in combination wit the burner and a conduit for supplying fluid fuel thereto, a cleaning element reciprocable in said conduit, an operating handle movably supported by the apparatus and swingable between inoperative and operative positions and reciprocable -when in the latter position, and operative connections between said handle and the cleaning element through which the reciprocating movements of the former are transmitted to the latter.

4. In heating apparatus, in combination with the burner and a conduit for supplying uid fuel thereto, a, cleaning element reciprocable in said conduit, guiding means carried by the apparatus, an operating handle movably sustained thereby and swingable between inoperative and operative positions and reciprocable through said guiding means when in the latter position, andv operative connections between said handle and the cleaning element through which the reciprocating movements of the former are transmitted to the latter.

In heating apparatus, in combination with the burner and a conduit for supplying fuel thereto, a cleaning element reciprocable in said conduit, an operating handle for said cleaning element so disposed that a part of the apparatus must be moved in order to gain access to the handle and which part is incapable of being returned to normal condition excepting when the operating handle is in its idle or inoperative position.

6. In heating apparatus, in combination with the burner and a conduit for supplying fluid fuel thereto, a cleaning element reciprocable in said conduit, an operating handle movably supported by the apparatus and swingable between inoperative and operatice positions and reciprocable when in the latter position, and connections between the handle and cleaning element, the apparatus incorporating a part that has to be moved in order to gain access to the operating handle and which is incapable of being returned to normal condition excepting when the operating handle is in inoperative position.

'7. In heating apparatus, in combination with the burner and a conduit for supplying fluid fuel thereto, a cleaning element reciprocable in said conduit, a guide carried by the apparatus and comprising adjacent parts that are disposed at an angle to each other, a slot formed in said parts, an operating handle guided through said slot and capable of a swinging movement within the confines of said slot between an operative and an inoperative position, and connections between said handle and the cleaning element.

8. In heating apparatus, in combination with the burner and a conduit for supplying fluid fuel thereto, a cleaning element reciprocable in said conduit, a guide supported by the apparatus and comprising walls that are disposed at an angle to each other and which are formed with a slot that is common to both walls, an operating handle swingable within said 'slot between an operative and an inoperative position, the ends of the slot serving to prevent movement of said handle beyond said positions, and a portion of the guide serving to prevent the return of the handle to inoperative position excepting when the handle is fully retracted, the handle being reciprocable through the slot when in operative position, and operative connections between the handle and the cleaning element. l

9. In mechanism of the class set forth, the combination of a guidejan elongated reciprocable element, a similar operating member pivoted at one end to an end of said' element and sustained by the guide for swinging movement between operative position, whereiny it is in substantial alignment with the element and inoperative' position at substantially right angles thereto, the member being reciprocable with respect to the guide when in operative position, and laterally spaced abutments incorporated in the guide for engagement with the member thereby tolocate it in the last mentioned position, said abutments' being spaced' apart longitudinally of thegmember s o as Ato permit the aforesaid swinging movement thereof.

10. In mechanism of the class set forth, the combination of a guide, an elongated reciprocable element, a similar operating 'member pivoted at one. end` to an end of said element andsustained.U

by the guide for swinging movement in a vertical plane between a substantially vertical operative position whereinit is in alignment with the element and a substantially horizontal inoperative position, the member `being reciprocable with' respect to the guide when in the former position, the guide incorporating opposed abutments occupying planesl that are spaced apart both horizontally and vertically a distancesubstantially equal to the width of the operating member whereby said member is located in a substantially vertical position for reciprocation and is permitted to swing to its horizontal inoperative position.

l1. In mechanism of the class set forth, the combination of a guide, an elongated reciprocable element, a similar operating member pivoted at one end to an end of said element and sustained by the guide for swinging movement in a vertical plane between a substantially vertical operative position wherein it is in alignment with the element v.and a substantially horizontal inoperative position, the member being reciprocable with respect to the guide when in the former position, the guide incorporating opposed abutments occupying planes that are spaced apart both horizontally and vertically a distance substantially equal to the width of the operating member whereby said member is located in a substantially vertical position for reciprocation and is permittenl to swing to its horizontal inoperative position, the guide/also having a part that is adapted to be engaged by the member so as to prevent the member from assuming horizontal position until fully retracted.

,12. In mechanism of the class set forth, the

combination of a guide consisting of a piece of strap metal having its central portion oifset from its end portions, said end portions constituting base flanges, the offset portion having a slot extending from a point adjacent one of the base anges to a part of the offset portion remote from Ii the plane of said flanges, and a second slot in the plane of the first slot and one end of which is formed in the other of the base iianges'and whosel other end is formed in the offset portion, and an operating member swingable and reciprocable a tubular guide merging with the conduit at a` point remote from the latters communication with the basin and rising a material distance above the horizontal plane of the latter, and a cleaning element consisting of a spirally wound wire disposed within-:the conduit and having an extension housed within thev tubular guide and by which the cleaning element isadapted to be reciprocated, the extension protruding a sufiicient distance above the guide to enable the cleaning element to be projected into the basin during its reciprocation.

LEE S. CHADWICK. CHARLES J. KESSLER. 

